Cable companies such as Comcast and Charter Communications are increasingly leaning into mobile services as a key growth driver. Once primarily known for offering pay TV bundles and landline phone services, these companies now focus significantly on home internet and mobile phone services. Comcast operates under the Xfinity brand, while Charter uses the Spectrum banner. Both have experienced consistent quarterly growth in mobile customers, with nearly half of all wireless line additions last year coming from cable operators, according to MoffettNathanson data.
This shift comes amid challenges in the broadband business, which has faced stagnation and even losses, impacting stock prices. To counter this, cable companies are offering cheaper mobile plans, sometimes hundreds of dollars less annually than traditional wireless plans. However, despite mobile growth, stock prices haven’t seen a corresponding rise, likely due to investor focus on broadband.
Media analyst Craig Moffett noted that this situation resembles the 2009-2010 period when investors were preoccupied with the decline of pay TV. He emphasized that broadband faces far less threat than pay TV did, and the mobile market’s size offers significant opportunities for cable operators.
Comcast and Charter report first-quarter earnings soon, highlighting mobile’s importance in their strategies. Mobile services often attract customers from their existing base, with bundling proving effective in retaining customers.
Charter and Comcast use Verizon’s network, while Altice has an agreement with T-Mobile, allowing them to offer lower-priced plans. Executives stress that much customer traffic occurs over Wi-Fi rather than wireless networks, making mobile profitable for them.
— new from CNBC